Most of the trips in open time are so crappy I assume they are DPs.
I am amazed at some of our trips that are not DP.

I'm amazed all the time that these trips get picked up! Nice job in the right seat of the 11...all DP's are officially gone!

I think if you conflict it with a large trip next month you get a choice of which to drop........not sure though, its in the CBA. Bid period processing maybe.....good luck. The sleep log and calling fatigue for what it is when you are is good advice.

what IS "really the issue" then?

You're right, the issue isn't "how hard is it?"

The issue is "How important is it?"

If it's REALLY important that you avoid locking yourself out of your car, you find a way to do it. If it's REALLY important for you to get your monthly bid in on time, you find a way to do it. If it's REALLY important for you to avoid disputed pairings, you find a way to do it.

If none of that stuff is important to you, once in a while it'll fall through the cracks.

Nitefrater...chicken dinner winner.
Make something painful enough and it gets easier to remember not to do/to do it.

Stupid humans.

I'm basically in agreement with you but since we all have have to live with the consequences of a pilot 'forgetting,' maybe we could (should?) come up with a system that's easier to recognize?

I suggest maybe negotiating that all DP's have a special designation pairing number ... maybe D123? FxCal identifies DP's in RED LETTERS, it seems like it would be easy to do that in VIPS also?

Gotta side with AFW on this one.
Lock your keys in the car - makes you late for work, letter in your file.
Leave your ID at the crashpad - Duty officer berates you on the phone and might not let you on the trip or jumpseat home.
Can't follow a checklist- no notice checkride or during recurrent and you get some additional training.
You don't get your bid on time- you end up on reserve or worse a line that makes you wish you were on reserve and have to pay for a hotel all month.

While I have always said, everyone gets to mess up once, on disputed pairings, that still doesn't negate the fact that it hurts all of us. I think AFW's point wasn't over the top. I think it would have been drastically different if there was no remorse in the words.

Prepping for trading isn't asking to much. Stay informed of the DPs. We have way too many ways to tell us it is a DP. All of the trading programs highlight it. Our list isn't that long! How about the fact that there even was a 77 hr trip with 8 days of C/O in open time.

Enough lecturing, and on to answer your question. Unfortunately FLMD's scenario of bidding to conflict into next month doesn't apply, your c/o trip is greater than 72hrs TAFB. The personal scheduling tool is about it. But, as stated previously, do a detailed sleep log, and don't push the "I can catch up on sleep later" issue.

Even with best intentions, one can still end up behind the wood shed!

As I said, I learn things the hard way.
I deserve and expect criticism for failing to screen open time for DPs.
I do not take my error for helping create unsafe pairings lightly.
Thanks for the workaround suggestions.
I will complete a sleep log.

I second what Unknown Rider said - just drop it (or try to) when open time is released next month. The system isn't not letting you drop it because its a disputed pairing, its not letting you drop it because of the carryover.

Picking up a disputed pairing isn't good, but FLYING it is worse. I believe as long as it ultimately gets assigned to Reserves we've sent our message as a crewforce. Good luck dropping it next month...

BTW - we had one crewmember who was picking them up intentionally and dropping them at the last minute to prevent them from being flown by anyone other than reserves. Not sure if he still does...